Depression is different from normal sadness.

Depression is not simply feeling sad. Depression is a disorder with specific symptoms that can be diagnosed and treated. About one-fourth of cancer patients become depressed. The numbers of men and women affected are about the same.

A person diagnosed with cancer faces many stressful issues. These may include:

Depression and anxiety are common in patients whose cancer is advanced and can no longer be treated.

Patients whose cancer can no longer be treated often feel depressed and anxious. These feelings can lower the quality of life. Terminally ill patients who are depressed report being troubled about:

Symptoms.

Relationships.

Beliefs about life.

Depressed terminally ill patients feel they are "being a burden" even when they don't depend very much on others.

Family members also have a risk of depression.

Anxiety and depression are also common in family members caring for loved ones with cancer. Children are affected when a parent with cancer is depressed and may have emotional and behavioral problems themselves.

Good communication helps. Family members who talk about feelings and solve problems are more likely to have lower levels of anxiety and depression.

All the medicines you are taking and other treatments you are receiving. Sometimes, side effects of medicines or the cancer can look like symptoms of depression. This is more likely during active cancer treatment or advanced cancer.

This information will help you and your doctor find out if you are feeling normal sadness or have a depressive disorder.

Checking for depression may be repeated at times when stress increases, such as when cancer gets worse or comes back after treatment.

Physical exams, mental exams, and lab tests are used to diagnose depression.

In addition to talking with you, your doctor may do the following to check for depression:

Physical exam and history: An exam of the body to check general signs of health, including checking for signs of disease, such as lumps or anything else that seems unusual. A history of your health habits, past illnesses including depression, and treatments will also be taken. A physical exam can help rule out a physical condition that may be causing your symptoms.

Laboratory tests: Medical procedures that test samples of tissue, blood, urine, or other substances in the body. These tests help to diagnose disease, plan and check treatment, or monitor the disease over time. Lab tests are done to rule out a medical condition that may be causing symptoms of depression.

Mental status exam: An exam done to get a general idea of your mental state by checking the following:

The decision to treat depression depends on how long it has lasted and how much it affects your life.

If you cannot adjust to the cancerdiagnosis after a long time and you have lost interest in your usual activities, you may have depression that needs to be treated. Treatment of depression may include medicines, talk therapy, or both.

Treatment of major depression usually includes medicine.

It's important to use antidepressants only under the care of a doctor.

Antidepressants help relieve depression and its symptoms. When you are taking antidepressants, it's important that they are used under the care of a doctor. You may be treated with a number of medicines during your cancer care. Some anticancer medicines may not mix safely with certain antidepressants or with certain foods, herbals, or nutritional supplements. It's important to tell your healthcare providers about all the medicines, herbals, and nutritional supplements you are taking, including medicines used as patches on the skin. This can help prevent unwanted reactions.

Many antidepressants take from 3 to 6 weeks to work. Usually, you begin at a low dose that is slowly increased to find the right dose for you. This helps to avoid side effects.

Check with your doctor before you stop taking an antidepressant. You may need to slowly reduce the dose of some types of antidepressants. This is to prevent side effects you may have if you suddenly stop taking the medicine.

There are different types of antidepressants.

Most antidepressants help treat depression by changing the levels of chemicals called neurotransmitters in the brain. Nerves use these chemicals to send messages to one another. Increasing the amount of these chemicals helps to improve mood. The different types of antidepressants act on these chemicals in different ways and have different side effects.

Three types of antidepressants are commonly used to treat depression in patients with cancer:

St. John's wort may change the way some of your other medicines work.

St. John's wort (Hypericum perforatum) is an herbal product sold as an over-the-counter treatment for depression. St. John's wort has not been proven to be better than standard antidepressant medicines. Many studies have been done to compare St. John's wort with antidepressants, placebo (inactive) medicines, or both, and have shown mixed results.

Be sure to talk with your doctor before taking St. John's wort. It may change the way some of your other medicines work, including anticancer medicines. Also, there are no standards for companies that make St. John's wort, so the amount of active ingredient may be different in each brand.

Counseling or talk therapy helps some cancer patients with depression.

It's common for cancer patients to feel hopeless at times.

Cancer patients sometimes feel hopeless. Although few cancer patients are reported to die by suicide, talk with your doctor if you feel hopeless or have thoughts of suicide. There are ways your doctor can help you. Getting treatment for major depression has been shown to lower the risk of suicide in cancer patients.

Risk factors for suicide may be related to the cancer or other conditions.

An assessment is done to find the reasons for hopeless feelings or thoughts of suicide.

Talking about thoughts of suicide with your doctor gives you a chance to describe your feelings and fears, and may help you feel more in control. Your doctor will try to find out what is causing your hopeless feelings, such as:

Treatment may include antidepressants. Some antidepressants take a few weeks to work. The doctor may prescribe other medicines that work quickly to relieve distress until the antidepressant begins to work. Patients usually are given only a small number of doses at a time. For your safety, it's important to have frequent contact with a health care professional and avoid being alone until your symptoms are controlled. Your health care team can help you find social support.

Losing a loved one to suicide is especially hard for the family and friends.

The shock and grief felt after the loss of a loved one to suicide is very difficult. Family members and others who loved the patient may feel like they have been left or rejected. They may feel guilty or angry or they may feel responsible for the suicide. Talking with a professional or a support group can be very helpful for family members and others who loved the patient. Support groups can:

Sedation may be considered for comfort.

Sedation can be given to ease these conditions. This is called palliative sedation. Deciding to use palliative sedation may be difficult for the family as well as the patient. The patient and family can get support from the health care team and mental health professionals when palliative sedation is used.

Choices about care and treatment at the end of life should be made while you are still able to make them.

Your thoughts and feelings about end-of-life sedation may depend on your own culture and beliefs. Some patients who become anxious facing the end of life may want to be sedated. Other patients may wish to have no procedures, including sedation, just before death. It is important for you to tell family members and health care providers of your wishes about sedation at the end of life. When you make your wishes about sedation known ahead of time, doctors and family members can be sure they're doing what you would want.

These problems can affect the child's cancer treatment and enjoyment of life. Children with severe late effects from cancer treatment may be more likely to have symptoms of depression. A mental healthspecialist can help children with depression.

Assessment for depression includes looking at the child's symptoms, behavior, and health history.

As in adults, normal sadness in children is not depression. Depression lasts longer and has specific symptoms. The doctor may assess the child for depression if a behavior problem goes on for a long time. To assess for depression, the doctor will need the following information about the child:

Home life with family.

How the child faces illness and treatment.

Age and stage of development.

Past illnesses and how the child responded to them.

Sense of self-worth.

Behavior, as seen by the parents, teachers, or others.

The doctor will talk with the child and may use a set of questions or a checklist that helps to diagnose depression in children.

A diagnosis of depression depends on the symptoms and how long they have lasted.

Children who are depressed have an unhappy mood and at least 4 of the following symptoms every day for 2 weeks or longer:

Treatment may be therapy or medicine.

Talk therapy is the main treatment for depression in children.

Individual and group talk therapy are the main treatments for depression in children. This may include play therapy for younger children. Therapy will help the child cope with feelings of depression and also understand the cancer and its treatment.

Medicines for depression may be used with care.

The doctor may prescribe antidepressants for children with severe depression and anxiety. Children taking antidepressants must be watched closely. SSRIs (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors) are a type of antidepressant that usually have few side effects. However, in some children, teenagers, and young adults, SSRIs make depression worse or cause thoughts of suicide. The Food and Drug Administration has warned that patients younger than age 25 who are taking SSRIs should be watched closely for signs that the depression is getting worse and for suicidal thinking or behavior. This is especially important during the first 4 to 8 weeks of treatment.

Changes to This Summary (12/03/2014)

The PDQcancer information summaries are reviewed regularly and updated as new information becomes available. This section describes the latest changes made to this summary as of the date above.

Editorial changes were made to this summary.

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